CPCE Sample Test Questions with Solved Answers
1.A professional counselor determines fees for monthly consultation
services on a job-by-job basis. This is an example of which of the following
types of reinforcement schedules?: variable ratio
2.Kohlberg's theory of moral development includes 3 progressive levels
cul- minating in...: principled thought, wherein the individual adopts a
self- accepted set of standards of behavior.
3.Research on the development of a person in a so-called "humanistic
life outlook" has shown that it is facilitated by
A. formal educational experiences.
B. observational learning experiences.
C. diverse interpersonal interactions.
D. all of the above.: D
4.When persons who are characteristically shy and withdrawn participate in
"assertiveness training," initially they experience uncertainty and self-doubt.
Counselors refer to this social psychological concept as
A. cognitive dissonance.
B. dissociation.
C. individuation.
D. acculturation: A
5."Men (used here to mean all people) are disturbed not by things, but by
the view which they take of them." This quote, attributable to Epictetus,
most closely describes the counseling theory developed by
A. Rogers.
B. Carkhuff.
C. Freud.
D. Ellis.: D
6.The counseling technique in which the counselor intensifies the client's
emotional state in order to help the client understand the irrationality of
the emotional reaction is known as
A. confrontation.
B. paradoxical intention.
C. systematic desensitization.
D. reconfiguration.: B
7.Counselors know that groups are formed for different purposes. For
exam- ple, in some groups the primary goal is to yield some specified
outcome, or "product," while in others the primary goal is to focus on the
"process" of interaction within the group. Which of the following types of
groups is more product than process oriented?
,A. Behavioral
B. Transactional-analysis
C. Adlerian
D. Client-centered: A
8.In the context of group counseling, members that are high in
conformity also tend to be high in
A. independence.
B. authoritarianism.
C. intelligence.
D. superiority.: B
9.A counselor who structures a career counseling group to help group
mem- bers understand a "fields and levels" approach to careers is following
the theory of
A. Super.
B. Roe.
C. Holland.
D.Tiedeman.: B
10.The concept of "career maturity" has been described and researched
most extensively by
A. Crites.
B. Hoyt.
C. Tiedeman.
D. Ginzberg.: A
11.Person A and Person B both took the same test. Person A got a score
of 100 while Person B got a score of 75. In order for a counselor to
determine whether the difference between their scores was because of
"chance," the counselor would need to know which of the following
characteristics of the test?
A. mean
B. standard deviation
C. standard error of measurement
D. standard error of the mean: C
12.A counselor conducted a study intended to evaluate the effectiveness
of on-going group career counseling on the vocational maturity of high
school sophomores. The study was begun in September and continued
until June. This study is partcularly susceptible to which of the following
threats to the validity of an experiment?
A. regression
B. maturation
,C. reactive effects of experimentation
D. multiple treatment interference: B
13.A counselor designs a study where two experimental groups and one
control group complete pre- and post-experiment measures of self-
concept. The subjects were not randomly assigned to the groups because
of sched- uling problems. Which of the following techniques is MOST
appropriate for analyzing the resultant data?
A. analysis of covariance
B. correlated t-tests
C. analysis of variance
D. Wilcoxon matched-pairs signed-ranks test: A
14.You have been providing career counseling to a client who is seeking
employment. Concurrent with the counseling, and with your knowledge, the
client has made application for employment with several employers. A
poten- tial employer calls you and asks for your opinion as to your client's
suitability for the employer's job opening. Under which of the following
conditions are you free (i.e., not in violation of professional ethics), to
provide the information requested?
A. When it is clear that the client will not get the job unless the information
is given
B. When you are certain that the information you would provide would
assure that the client would get the job.
C.When in your best judgment you believe the information would enhance
the client's chances for getting the job.
D. None of the above: D
15.As applied to professional licensure of counselors, the term
"reciprocity" means that
A. one licensing agency agrees to accept the licensing standards of
another as sufficient for its own.
B. a licensed counselor may legally perform the functions of a
licensed psychologist.
C. certification is synonymous with licensure.
D. graduation from a fully accredited counselor education program
automat- ically constitutes eligibility for licensure.: A
16.Susie is playing with blocks and is trying to build a tower; she tries
but cannot build a tower. Susie's mother helps her build a four-block tower.
Later, Susie builds a four-block tower without her mother's help. According t
Vygotsky, the inability to build the tower on her own is known as:
, a. scaffolding
b. the zone of proximal development
c. assisted discovery
d. learning by imitation: B
17.According to Erickson, when an individual fails to develop a strong
sense of identity, the individual will have troubles with the development of:
a. autonomy
b. initiative
c. intimacy
d. integrity: C
18.Which of the following is the correct sequence of stages in Freud's
theory of personality development?
a. Oral, genital, latency, anal, phallic
b. Genital, anal, phallic, oral, latency
c. Latency, phallic, oral, anal, genital
d. Oral, anal, phallic, latency, genital: D
19.Jacob's father tells Jacob to clean his room. When Jacob asks why, his
father responds, "Because I said so." The father's response is most
represen- tative of which parenting style?
a. Uninvolved
b. Authoritarian
c. Authoritative
d. Permissive: B
20.Harry Harlow used baby monkeys and several different kinds of
"surrogate mothers" to investigate which factors are important in early
development and attachment. According to his findings, baby monkeys:
a. preferred a soft terrycloth "mother" to a wire-mesh "mother" that held
a bottle
b. preferred a wire-mesh "mother" that held a bottle to a soft
terrycloth "mother"
c. showed no preference
d. preferred neither "mother": A
21.Which of the following is a myth about suicide in the United States?
a. Male suicide is four times higher than that among females.
b. It occurs in age groups of 90 years and up.
c. Psychiatrists, physicians, and dentists are most prone.
d. Asking someone about suicide may push that person over the edge: D
1.A professional counselor determines fees for monthly consultation
services on a job-by-job basis. This is an example of which of the following
types of reinforcement schedules?: variable ratio
2.Kohlberg's theory of moral development includes 3 progressive levels
cul- minating in...: principled thought, wherein the individual adopts a
self- accepted set of standards of behavior.
3.Research on the development of a person in a so-called "humanistic
life outlook" has shown that it is facilitated by
A. formal educational experiences.
B. observational learning experiences.
C. diverse interpersonal interactions.
D. all of the above.: D
4.When persons who are characteristically shy and withdrawn participate in
"assertiveness training," initially they experience uncertainty and self-doubt.
Counselors refer to this social psychological concept as
A. cognitive dissonance.
B. dissociation.
C. individuation.
D. acculturation: A
5."Men (used here to mean all people) are disturbed not by things, but by
the view which they take of them." This quote, attributable to Epictetus,
most closely describes the counseling theory developed by
A. Rogers.
B. Carkhuff.
C. Freud.
D. Ellis.: D
6.The counseling technique in which the counselor intensifies the client's
emotional state in order to help the client understand the irrationality of
the emotional reaction is known as
A. confrontation.
B. paradoxical intention.
C. systematic desensitization.
D. reconfiguration.: B
7.Counselors know that groups are formed for different purposes. For
exam- ple, in some groups the primary goal is to yield some specified
outcome, or "product," while in others the primary goal is to focus on the
"process" of interaction within the group. Which of the following types of
groups is more product than process oriented?
,A. Behavioral
B. Transactional-analysis
C. Adlerian
D. Client-centered: A
8.In the context of group counseling, members that are high in
conformity also tend to be high in
A. independence.
B. authoritarianism.
C. intelligence.
D. superiority.: B
9.A counselor who structures a career counseling group to help group
mem- bers understand a "fields and levels" approach to careers is following
the theory of
A. Super.
B. Roe.
C. Holland.
D.Tiedeman.: B
10.The concept of "career maturity" has been described and researched
most extensively by
A. Crites.
B. Hoyt.
C. Tiedeman.
D. Ginzberg.: A
11.Person A and Person B both took the same test. Person A got a score
of 100 while Person B got a score of 75. In order for a counselor to
determine whether the difference between their scores was because of
"chance," the counselor would need to know which of the following
characteristics of the test?
A. mean
B. standard deviation
C. standard error of measurement
D. standard error of the mean: C
12.A counselor conducted a study intended to evaluate the effectiveness
of on-going group career counseling on the vocational maturity of high
school sophomores. The study was begun in September and continued
until June. This study is partcularly susceptible to which of the following
threats to the validity of an experiment?
A. regression
B. maturation
,C. reactive effects of experimentation
D. multiple treatment interference: B
13.A counselor designs a study where two experimental groups and one
control group complete pre- and post-experiment measures of self-
concept. The subjects were not randomly assigned to the groups because
of sched- uling problems. Which of the following techniques is MOST
appropriate for analyzing the resultant data?
A. analysis of covariance
B. correlated t-tests
C. analysis of variance
D. Wilcoxon matched-pairs signed-ranks test: A
14.You have been providing career counseling to a client who is seeking
employment. Concurrent with the counseling, and with your knowledge, the
client has made application for employment with several employers. A
poten- tial employer calls you and asks for your opinion as to your client's
suitability for the employer's job opening. Under which of the following
conditions are you free (i.e., not in violation of professional ethics), to
provide the information requested?
A. When it is clear that the client will not get the job unless the information
is given
B. When you are certain that the information you would provide would
assure that the client would get the job.
C.When in your best judgment you believe the information would enhance
the client's chances for getting the job.
D. None of the above: D
15.As applied to professional licensure of counselors, the term
"reciprocity" means that
A. one licensing agency agrees to accept the licensing standards of
another as sufficient for its own.
B. a licensed counselor may legally perform the functions of a
licensed psychologist.
C. certification is synonymous with licensure.
D. graduation from a fully accredited counselor education program
automat- ically constitutes eligibility for licensure.: A
16.Susie is playing with blocks and is trying to build a tower; she tries
but cannot build a tower. Susie's mother helps her build a four-block tower.
Later, Susie builds a four-block tower without her mother's help. According t
Vygotsky, the inability to build the tower on her own is known as:
, a. scaffolding
b. the zone of proximal development
c. assisted discovery
d. learning by imitation: B
17.According to Erickson, when an individual fails to develop a strong
sense of identity, the individual will have troubles with the development of:
a. autonomy
b. initiative
c. intimacy
d. integrity: C
18.Which of the following is the correct sequence of stages in Freud's
theory of personality development?
a. Oral, genital, latency, anal, phallic
b. Genital, anal, phallic, oral, latency
c. Latency, phallic, oral, anal, genital
d. Oral, anal, phallic, latency, genital: D
19.Jacob's father tells Jacob to clean his room. When Jacob asks why, his
father responds, "Because I said so." The father's response is most
represen- tative of which parenting style?
a. Uninvolved
b. Authoritarian
c. Authoritative
d. Permissive: B
20.Harry Harlow used baby monkeys and several different kinds of
"surrogate mothers" to investigate which factors are important in early
development and attachment. According to his findings, baby monkeys:
a. preferred a soft terrycloth "mother" to a wire-mesh "mother" that held
a bottle
b. preferred a wire-mesh "mother" that held a bottle to a soft
terrycloth "mother"
c. showed no preference
d. preferred neither "mother": A
21.Which of the following is a myth about suicide in the United States?
a. Male suicide is four times higher than that among females.
b. It occurs in age groups of 90 years and up.
c. Psychiatrists, physicians, and dentists are most prone.
d. Asking someone about suicide may push that person over the edge: D
